The Best Summer Sports Leagues in Toronto

The best summer sports leagues in Toronto include a range of popular athletic activities as well as niche sports. For seasoned athletes or recreational players, participating in a club or league is a great way to enjoy the warmer weather, stay in shape, and meet new people.

As evidenced by some of the smaller leagues on this list, the quality of a Toronto sports league is not necessarily defined by the size of its membership. Being part of a tight, dedicated group of enthusiasts can often provide a more rewarding experience than a larger one. And the more grassroots the community, the more welcoming it usually is to newbies.

If you ask me, the best sports leagues provide experiences as social as they are athletic. Get back into a favourite activity or try your hand at something new, and chances are you'll shed pounds, acquire skills, and gain friendships and team bonds that endure on and off the field.

Here are the the 12 best summer sports leagues in Toronto as voted by readers of this site.

The TSSC not only offers sports like soccer, ultimate Frisbee and tennis, but you can also sign yourself up for cooking and photography classes, speed dating, Amazing-Race style urban adventures, and much more. With a multitude of co-ed and single-gender activities for teams and individuals happening year round, the Toronto Sport and Social Club truly has something for everyone.

Members of ToRD are fast on their quad-wheeled feet and fiercely loyal to their sport and community. An all-female operated organization, Toronto Roller Derby is the largest flat-track derby league in Canada, providing an especially supportive athletic and social environment for girls and women.

Not So Pro Toronto offers outdoor sports like flag football, softball, ultimate Frisbee, and rowing; indoor options like basketball and floor hockey; as well as a variety of clinics, bootcamps, and parties throughout the year. Even if their summer offerings aren't your thing, you might want to mark up the cooler months of your calendar with their ski and snowboard club excursions.

Who doesn't love a little dodgeball? Recreational, intermediate, and competitive players can get their fix with the Toronto Dodgeball Association. All of their summer leagues are played on outdoor sand courts, and each 60- to 70-minute game is officiated by two referees. Every team has a shot at having their name engraved on the championship trophy, and the league throws team pizza parties after playoff games, to boot.

TUC is the place to get involved in Toronto's ultimate Frisbee scene. This year marks the not-for-profit, volunteer-driven club's 30th anniversary. Offerings include skills clinics for beginners, hat tournaments, pickup games, year-round co-ed and single-gender leagues for all skill levels, and a separate league for juniors aged 18 and under. Warning: start chasing plastic with these folks, and you may find it hard to quit. Stall eight, stall nine, up!

Remember elementary school gym class kickball? If not, refresh yourself every Sunday at 5:30 p.m. at Alexandra Park. Simply put, a group of guys and gals come together to play a sport that's like baseball, but with kicking. And then they go out for drinks (okay, maybe not quite like elementary school). It's free to participate, newcomers are welcome, and wacky outfits are optional.

If you're a resident of the Yonge and Eglinton area, the Toronto Recreational Sports League will cater to your needs. All of their field and gym locations are located as close as possible to the intersection. If there's a place you can't find by yourself, their site lists helpful directions to each of their facilities. Sports offerings include baskbetball, soccer, and ultimate Frisbee. All leagues are recreational, co-ed, non-contact, and for adults in their 20s and 30s.

Toronto's soccer fanatics need to look no farther than the TSSL. League membership consists of anywhere between 80 to 110 teams at any given year. Games are held all over the city, from Centennial Park in Etobicoke to Seneca College, Glendon College, and Sunnybrook Park. Individual players looking for a team can fill out a submission form and be sorted into a team based on experience and preferred position.

In the summer, the XTSC's offerings include outdoor field and turf soccer, dodgeball, and ultimate, and indoor court volleyball for adult recreational league players in Toronto. Benefits include competitive pricing, same game locations, referees, various free games and tournaments, and more.

For those looking for some fun on two wheels with balls and mallets, there's Toronto's league of bike polo. Bike polo calls Scadding Court Rink in Alexandra Park its home on weeknights and Sunday evenings. The best way to keep up with the pick-up league is to stay tuned to the league Facebook page or by following them on their Twitter.

Do you crave beach volleyball all year long? Beach Blast brings it, with indoor and outdoor sandbox courts at 15 Leswyn Road in North York. The league runs 365 days a year, and you never have to worry about being rained out of your plans for some fun in the sand with friends.

Started in 1985 after a series of semi-organized pick-up baseball games, the Scarborough Adult Baseball League grew from its initial four teams to its current 10-team, two-division configuration. Games are played on Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays, with most games taking place at Wishing Well Park.

I wish there were more community run and non-profit leagues out there. The for profit orgainizations charge like $8 a game and usually have locations spanning the entire city (extra $5 for ttc to get there). lame.

I've been trying to find some activities downtown, preferably street hockey, for exercise and fun but haven't had much luck. Kickball is a decent substitute and will check it out this Sunday. After reading the website, this looks like a perfect fit for the girlfriend and I. It's co-ed, all shapes and sizes, different ages, it's not super competitive and it's all about having fun.

Actually, plenty of the leagues are still accepting registrations, have pick-up options where you can just show up, or offer activities that don't even start until August. And I highly doubt the list will expire by next summer. It's always useful to have an idea of what's out there! :)

Woohoo! I've played and enjoyed TUC and TCSSC for many years now. Sports are a great way to keep active and meet plenty of people. Ultimate has not only become a weekly sport but I've also gotten to participate in some awesome Tournaments like Gender Blender, http://www.genderblender.org/.

For those interested in playing Ultimate Frisbee, you can definitely learn more and/or improve your skills with Norman Lew, http://www.ultimateworkout.ca/. He's a super friendly, motivational leader and coach.

The TSSL is actually closed for registering teams now, but individual players looking for teams can go to the TSSL site and fill out a form to be added to the player pool. There are lots of teams always looking for players. They also will be offering an indoor league starting this fall.

For anyone looking for ball hockey, Withrow Park Ball Hockey is a great place to play. Fall season is beg.-Sept. to end-Oct. Check out www.withrowballhockey.net. Warning: it's popular.
Use the email address provided to get more info--you'll get an answer.

Check out www.actionawaits.com A social event, sports & travel company that doesn't charge membership fees and is based in downtown Toronto. It's perfect for new people to the city. They have a deal on at the moment - buy 2 ski/snowboard trips, get 1 free!

I have played on XTSC for 2 years now. At the same time I have also played on TSSC and TRSL. At first I was drawn to certain unique features the XTSC offered:

- Lower league fees
-Same location every game
- Refereed games

Our first season was quite good and it was smooth sailing, but as time went on, I realized that everytime one needed to interface with the league organisers or had a chance to test their customer service, XTSC failed. Also they are unapproachable, disorganized and quite rash in their decision making.

Examples:

- Teams were not assigned to their playing location of choice.

-On more than one occasion, our team was assigned to multiple playing locations. This is in direct conflict with one of their selling features.

-League does not even have a phone number to call and get someone on the line to answer questions.

- The referees are rude, disengaged and rarely keep a handle on the game. If anything the presence of referees encourages players to play more aggressively and try to get away with it. Players on my team have dislocated their knee, got stiches on their lip. All due to overly agressive play which escalated from the referee being too passive throughout the game.

-One season, players had parked their cars on XTSC approved parking areas(communicated to us via email from the league), however this had not been properly researched. After one game, all 36 cars had been ticketed($40 each) and all the league could do was shrug and say OOPS!

- The actual XTSC organiser plays in the same league. God forbid you have been assigned to play in their bracket. If you actually have the misfortune of playing against the organiser's team(personal expereince) - refereeing becomes very partial, games get unpleasant and aggressive. The organiser steps in and makes decisions on games which directly affect the progress of his personal team.

- I have heard of teams being disqualified by the league organiser without just reason. First and second hand, I have noticed the league organiser being quite autocratic and dismissive in his interaction with his customers. There is no way to call XTSC and emails to them get answered in a very selective manner.

I could go on.

Needless to say, in spite of whatever benefits XTSC claims they offer in the opinion of myself and over a dozen players(all young professionals) on our roster, its NOT WORTH IT. Customer service is poor, the league is run in a very unprofessional manner and organizational skills are quite pathetic.
Really leaves a bad taste in your mouth.

Now after 2 years of giving this league a chance, all of us have decided to take our business and patience elsewhere. The other leagues are not perfect, but at least they have the basics right and know how to run themselves as an impartial business. TSSC, TRSL or anywhere but XTSC!

You forgot to mention the best league (erm... pick-up sports organization) of them all: The Toronto Outdoor Club, a free, member-run outdoor, sports and social club.

Pick-up sports played include: Baseball, Basketball, Football, Hockey (Floor or Road), Soccer Dodgeball, Kickball and Ultimate Frisbee are all played. There is no fee for joining and the majority of events are completely FREE.

If anyone is interested in organizing pick-up sports games with the Toronto Outdoor Club, please contact volunteers@torontooutdoorclub.com. Anyone can become an event coordinator with the club. All you need to do is undergo a short training session. Events are always well attended because of their online reservation system.
Toronto Outdoor Club

Thanks so much for creating this list!! I have been looking everywhere for recreational leagues to try out sports I have never played. Now I have all the info in one place! Thanks again for making it so easy to get/keep fit and have fun outdoors!

Since 1949, Alderwood Softball Assoc. has provided house league youth summer softball for boys and girls to the communities of Alderwood, Long Branch and New Toronto. I'm afraid for the 2013 season all our T-Ball positions are filled, however we have lots of positions open for children aged 5 to 14. Registration fees are VERY competitive! Visit our website at www.alderwoodsoftball.ca or email me at alderwoodsoftballcomms2012@gmail.com for more info - AND PLAY BALL! Hope to see you soon!

XTSC puts no value in customer service and poor execution of administration and league set-up is an understatement. Been with them 3 seasons for "competitive" volleyball and none of them panned out as per their claims or rules via their website. Problems included:

a) Gym permit was not properly attained and teams were not notified AT ALL. We showed up the first week and were sent home because XTSC did not have the permit for the gym and the league was delayed by one week while the other tier's gym started already. As such, the tiers were not playing in sync (one gym was one week ahead of the other)and team points and playoffs were all messed up.

b) Unresponsive to client inquiries, or worse, responded rudely with sarcastic, demeaning and unapologetic comments. Did not address inquiry or concern and made it clear that they did not care to rectify any errors.

c) Late or incorrect score updates, team points, etc. (hence related to A and B, where schedules became messed up and furious customers get no response or rude responses)

d) Terrible equipment. They claim they have it ready for you and it is set up - however the nets are not the proper volleyball nets (some knock-off badminton net), no antennas and inadequate poles are used where nets are not at proper height.

Overall, a very low-level, uncompetitive, unorganized and non-customer friendly league. They boast about "2 hour playtime for cheap", however it comes with all the aformentioned negative experience. Do not join this league - it is not worth the miserable play and frustration. Money better spent elsewhere.

Hey guys can anyone suggest a good soccer training academy/league for a 19 yr old? The world cup has me wanting to play again but I can't seem to find any training academies. Any help out there? Thanks in advance

XTSC is one of the worst run leagues with very rude and unprofessional owners and staff. I would advise people to think twice before signing up.

We signed up for coed soccer with referees. The referees are also players on teams in the same league, which is a complete conflict of interest. It is also quite evident Most of the teams in the league are friends with each other and the referees making it difficult to make fair calls.

Most recently we played a highly aggressive team who took their attacks to extreme levels. Players on the team injured our captain twice during the game. The team spent most of the game complaining and verbally attacking our players who remained quiet for most of the game. At one point during a play a female player was unintentionally tripped by me. This is not uncommon in a sport such as soccer. Her reaction was extreme, calling me names and then when the referee wasn't looking coming up on me from behind and pushing me to the ground.
Verbal attacks continued throughout the game and quite frankly our team was fed up with playing, some of our players left the field because they didn't want to continue.

At the end of the game, fed up with the aggression throughout the game , I threw what was left of my water onto the female players shirt. Argue if you will on that response to being verbally and physically bullied the entire game; but this did not warrant what happened next. The female team member lunged at me pulling me by my hair towards her with one hand and digging into neck with her nails, drawing blood and leaving deep scars in my skin. The referee did nothing to stop the attack and blatantly tried to act like nothing was happening. My reaction to this was to walk away and leave the field. I have no interest in participating in physical violence of any kind, especially during a recreational soccer game. The way were were treated during the game felt like something you would experience on King west at a bar, hair pulling, pushing, insulting and scratching. Give me a break.

The best part of this is the way the league administration handled the situation. Their website clearly states the following:

"Physical Violence towards people: the threat of physical violence, or implied physical violence will result in immediate ejection from the league. This applies if you start the conflict or decide to end the conflict with violence. Maintain self-control, walk away!
"

The league is suggesting that if the referee didn't see an attack then it didn't happen, regardless of photographs of the deep wounds to my neck. The administration actually used the words "alleged attack" to describe a situation that took place in the middle of the field with several teams playing and the referee 3 feet away.
I have asked for my money back and after reading other reviews I am sure nothing will be done to address this situation. I have no interest in playing in a league where I do not feel safe to play without being physically attacked.

I strongly advise others to avoid this league at all costs. It's not worth the few dollars you save. There are other leagues where conduct such as this would be unacceptable, and the victim of the attack would not be treated like the bad guy in the situation.